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The Medusae
= "The Gorgons" = "The Medusa," as a single Totem, no longer exist. Due to circumstances that are not clear even to the Furies' eldest Theurges, Medusa herself has fallen away from her sisters; all five now exist as independent Totem spirits. Packs previously dedicated to the Medusae should pick a new totem from among the five Gorgons (listed individually below). This is an out-of-character decision, as the Gorgons themselves select their own packs in this time of turmoil. Players may cede this decision to the Storyteller, of course. According to the historian in Chapter 1, no known pack formerly dedicated to the Medusae as a group has been adopted by Medusa herself; however, there is no reason that, Storyteller willing, your pack cannot be the first. = Euryale = Background Cost: 4 Euryale, also called the Far Springer, is the eldest of the Five Daughters. She often serves as the matron spirit to packs of Amazons of Diana; she sympathizes with their general feeling that Man is the weaker sex, and deserves to be subjugated by Woman. Despite her role as older sister, Euryale is a New Moon. She encourages Furies and female packs to deliberately violate social conventions imposed by patriarchal society whenever they can; Euryale can almost be heard cheering when a human woman walks down a New York street topless, or when a lesbian couple adopts a child. Traits Packs devoted to Euryale receive the Gift: Fatal Flaw and Gift: Hare's Leap, and +3 dice when using Intimidation on males. Ban Packs of Euryale can never contain male members, and will only subject themselves to a male sept official if he defeats the pack’s alpha in an open challenge. = Helena = Background Cost: 4 Helena, the Crescent Moon of the First Daughters, holds a great deal more respect for Man than her older sister Euryale does. She knows that both sexes are equally parts of Gaia, and it is simply the misguidance of the Patriarch that leads Man astray. Packs devoted to Helena probably tend to err on the side of harshness when it comes to females’ weakness; Helena’s daughters, for instance, are sure to hold a mother partially culpable if her husband is abusing their children. However, they are sure to ferret out the truth of such a situation, and come down most harshly on the more serious offender of the couple, regardless of gender. Traits Helena’s packs receive the Gift: Name the Spirit, +1 to Charisma and +3 dice to Investigation dice pools. Each pack member gains one temporary Wisdom Renown. Ban Helena’s packs must contain an equal number of male and female Garou. If there is an odd number in the pack, the odd Garou can be of either gender (if the pack has seven members, there can be 4 male and 3 female, or 4 female and 3 male, but not 5 and 2 in either direction). The males can be Fury metis or members of other tribes, if Helena accepts them. = Isthmene = Background Cost: 5 Isthmene the Axe-Maiden is the youngest and most beautiful of the Gorgons; she is also the most fierce in battle. She wields a labrys of pure silver, and encourages her daughters to wield a labrys as their primary weapon. Despite her kindly appearance, Isthmene brooked no insult or back-talk from any man while she walked the Realm, and she does not handle rebukes from her older sisters much better. Garou legends have it that whole forests were felled in the ancient days as Isthmene worked off her Rage at her older sisters’ condescending ways. Traits Each member of one of Isthmene’s packs receives one Glory Renown, +2 dice to their Melee dice pools when wielding a labrys, and +1 Rage. They cannot enter Fox frenzies; when they do frenzy, it is always a frenzy of bloodlust. Ban Isthmene’s daughters will not tolerate any abuse from a male of any species, and they pay back such abuse in disproportionate fashion: insults are repaid with bruises; bruises with claw and tooth. = Medusa = Background Cost: 4 Medusa is older only than Isthmene, and her Rage is no less frightening to behold. Medusa’ hatred of Man is only exceeded by Isthmene’s; it is said that she howled a song of rage when Pegasus adopted the first male metis of the Black Fury tribe, and that she abandoned her sisters for several years after that. Medusa, known by the poet Hesiod as “The Queen,” was a Galliard in life, and her songs remain beautiful; many of them serve as battlefield Rites on their own. Medusa has once again left her sisters; whether willingly – due to a dispute with Helena or another – or as a result of battle with Wyrm- or Weaver-creatures is unknown. While most Furies assume that Medusa has no packs to call her own, the truth is that perhaps one or two packs have heard her distant calls, and receive some inspiration from their faraway mother. Traits Medusa’s daughters receive the Gift: Inspiration, +3 to dice pools involving Crafts, and +1 Honor Renown. Ban Medusa’s packs may contain neither members of tribes other than Black Furies, nor even male Fury metis; they even refuse to consort with such creatures at caerns when possible. = Stheno = Background Cost: 4 Stheno, called “the Mighty” by Hesiod, is the middle daughter, and as such serves as peacemaker among her sisters. Most often, to her chagrin, this involves standing to defend Helena against the other three, despite her own feelings toward Man. Stheno is as wise as she is strong; she rarely comes to any conclusion without proper deliberation, but her snap judgments are likely to be the correct ones nevertheless. Stheno seems to be terribly concerned about Medusa’s disappearance, and has assigned her daughters to seek out Medusa herself or any packs or minor spirits that serve her. Traits Members of packs devoted to Stheno receive one temporary Wisdom Renown, and the Gift: Strength of Purpose. The pack also gains an additional die of both Strength and Stamina to be apportioned in the usual way. Ban Daughters of Stheno must accede to any request to stand as arbiters, particularly in conflicts between men and women. They must endeavor to learn the truth of these conflicts before rendering judgment. Source: Black Furies Tribebook Rev ---- Medusae Medusae